The present invention relates to vehicle tailgate bed extenders, and more particularly, a tailgate bed extender that is nested on the tailgate.
Devices for extending the length of vehicle truck beds have become popular in recent years due in part to the emergence of extended cab vehicles. The extended cab has increased the passenger carrying capacity of the vehicle, however, it has reduced the available truck bed space. In order to recover at least a portion of the truck bed space lost, many truck bed extenders, such as the vehicle bed extender described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,759 issued to Cummins, have been developed.
Typically, tailgate bed extenders are retrofitted onto the tailgates of existing vehicles. Tailgate bed extenders must be relatively lightweight so that they do not interfere with the regular operation of the vehicle. In addition, tailgate bed extenders should be easy to deploy and store. Heavy tailgate bed extenders are cumbersome to use and reduce the structural integrity of the existing tailgate. Some tailgate bed extenders are partially mounted in the truck bed in order to help distribute the weight of the tailgate bed extender, so that the tailgate is not overloaded. This configuration is undesirable because the tailgate bed extender blocks off a portion of useable truck bed space.
Existing tailgate bed extenders are typically mounted so that the hinge covers at least part of the upper edge of the vehicle tailgate. Therefore, it is possible to view the tailgate bed extender from outside of the vehicle when it is in the stored position. This configuration is aesthetically undesirable, particularly on a new vehicle. The existing tailgate bed extenders are intended for use with vehicles having open truck beds, such as pick up trucks, however, they can not be used for sport utility vehicles or pick up trucks having caps.
In addition to being difficult to deploy and store, existing tailgate bed extenders are often too complex for an average vehicle owner to install. Professional installation can be costly depending on the complexity of the tailgate bed extender design. A tailgate bed extender that is simple to install by a vehicle owner or by a professional at a reasonable cost is desirable.
It is therefore an object of an aspect of the present invention to provide a tailgate bed extender that obviates or mitigates some or all of the above disadvantages.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a tailgate bed extender for a vehicle truck bed, the tailgate bed extender comprising:
a tray coupled to an inner wall of a tailgate of the vehicle truck bed, the tray being inset from a free edge of the tailgate;
a rear frame pivotally coupled to the tray;
sidearms pivotally coupled to opposing side edges of the rear frame, the sidearms being attachable to the vehicle truck bed;
a hinge assembly joining the rear frame to the tray, the hinge assembly having a rotation axis, the rotation axis being movable relative to the tray; and
wherein the rear frame is rotatable from a stored position in which the rear frame abuts the tray to a loading position in which the rear frame is at an angle of at least 180 degrees relative to the tray.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a tailgate bed extender for a vehicle truck bed, the tailgate bed extender comprising:
a rear frame pivotally coupled to an inner wall of the tailgate;
sidearms pivotally coupled to opposing side edges of the rear frame, the sidearms being attachable to the vehicle truck bed;
a hinge assembly joining the rear frame to the inner wall of the tailgate, the hinge assembly having a rotation axis, the rotation axis being movable relative to the inner wall of the tailgate; and
wherein the rear frame is rotatable from a stored position in which the rear frame abuts the inner wall to a loading position in which the rear frame is at an angle of at least 180 degrees relative to the inner wall.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a tailgate bed extender for a vehicle tail bed, the tailgate bed extender comprising:
a rear frame pivotally coupled to an inner wall of the tailgate;
sidearms pivotally coupled to opposing side edges of the rear frame, the sidearms being attachable to the vehicle tail bed;
a hinge assembly joining the rear frame to the inner wall of the tailgate, the hinge assembly having a rotation axis, the rotation axis being movable relative to the inner wall of the tailgate; and
wherein the rear frame is rotatable from a stored position in which the rear frame abuts the inner wall to a loading position in which the rear frame is at an angle of at least 180 degrees relative to the inner wall.
It is an advantage of an aspect of the present invention that the tailgate bed extender is fully contained on the vehicle tailgate and does not interfere with the upper and side edges of the tailgate.